Number of housing permits increase in Connecticut

The number of housing permits issued in Connecticut last month was up 14.5 percent over August 2015, officials with the state’s Department of Economic and Community Development said Tuesday.

The 276 permits issued in 104 Connecticut communities last month represents a rebound from a dismal new construction showing in July, when only 222 were given out. There were 241 construction permits issues in August 2015.

Over the first eight months of this year, there have been 2,703 housing permits issued. That is down 18.1 percent over the same period in 2015.

Don Klepper-Smith, chief economist and director of research for DataCore Partners in New Haven, said the difference between the number of August housing permits issued and the year-to-date total reflects a market that is looking to gain some traction in the state’s shifting economy.

“You can’t get that traction in the local housing market without getting it in the labor markets as well,” Klepper-Smith said. “We’re clearly past the recessionary levels, but we’re still in a base-building mode.”

Colchester in New London County had the most housing permit activity with 19 issued last month. Milford and Simsbury were tied for the second most housing permits issued in August with 17.